


A Dream of Gods and Destinies

by Lady_Sci_Fi



Series: Adventures in Egypt [7]
Category: Doctor Who, Doctor Who (1963)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-19
Updated: 2018-11-19
Packaged: 2019-08-26 04:15:40
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,152
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16674331
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Lady_Sci_Fi/pseuds/Lady_Sci_Fi
Summary: In Yamu, the Doctor and Sarah follow a priest into the Temple of Sekhmet, where they experience a dream like no other.





	A Dream of Gods and Destinies

 “Oh, now this looks like a nice place,” Sarah remarked as they rode Ajat to the stable on the edge of the city of Yamu. She got down from the camel and looked out at the lake. It was dotted with little islands and ruins, and across the distance she could see Alexandria.

 “What do you say to a spot of sailing?” the Doctor suggested. “Great weather for it.” He slipped off the animal to lead it by the reins.

 “That would be lovely,” Sarah agreed.

 A man in leopard skin and priestly clothing walked past as they finished getting Ajat settled in the stable. At the sound of pounding hooves and a shout, the Doctor only had a second to react, and yanked the priest out of the way of a rushing horse and rider.

 The priest clutched at his chest from the shock, and breathed deeply. “Thank you, my good neb.” He raised his head and turned to the couple. “The inconsi-“ He froze, and his eyes widened. His expression was one of vague recognition.

 “Yes, people can be quite inconsiderate, can’t they,” the Doctor remarked.

 “The lions,” the priest said in a hushed tone.

 “Lions?” Sarah glanced around in alarm.

 “We’ve come across a pride and a few individuals in our travels, but we didn’t bring any with us,” the Doctor said. At the priest’s shake of his head, he tilted his own head.

 “Have we met before?” Sarah asked, picking up on the priest’s expression.

 “No, not… I dreamed last night that I would meet two lions here in Yamu today.”

 The Doctor and Sarah glanced to each other, then the Timelord realized, “Oh, you mean us?”

 The priest nodded. “Come with me, please, to the temple?”

 “We don’t have any pressing plans, do we, Sarah?” the Doctor asked.

 “I’d love to see your temple,” Sarah agreed.

 The priest made a prayer gesture with his hands, then led them into the city proper.

 Sarah took the Doctor’s hand, and looked around as they walked. When they reached the large temple in the heart of Yamu, they smiled at the huge twin statues guarding the entrance.

 “Sekhmet,” the Doctor stated.

 Sarah leaned in to say quietly, “No wonder he dreams of lions.”

 “Please, sit,” the priest beckoned when they got to a room to the side of the complex. “I was instructed to bring you here to serve Sekhmet’s will and help you.”

 The Doctor and Sarah bowed their heads to the priest, then sat on the offered blanket on the floor. The smell of lit incense pleasantly filled the air. Sarah leaned sideways against the Doctor. The priest set a bowl of fruit and bread in front of them, and invited them to eat. They watched as the priest then left to gather some things.

 “I wonder what that dream of us was,” Sarah pondered, picking up a piece of bread and taking a bite.

 “I’m more interested in what he was instructed to do.”

 “He said help us. What kind of help is that going to be?”

 The Doctor popped a date into his mouth. “We’ll see soon.”  

 The priest returned a couple minutes later with a drinking bowl large enough that he held it up with both hands. He placed it on the blanket in front of the couple, then lit several candles, which only added to the pleasant aroma of the room. He also drew a heavy curtain across the entrance to block the sunlight filtering in.

 The priest sat across from the Doctor and Sarah, and smiled at the half-empty bowl of food. “Good, you have eaten. That will make this less strenuous on your bodies.”

 “What are we doing?” Sarah inquired. The new candle-lit smoky darkness of the room made a slight anxiety rise in her mind.

 “I am to aid you in understanding. I am to say no more.” The Priest noticed the apprehension on the other two, and assured, “You are not to come to harm, I promise.”

 “We didn’t think you would harm us,” the Doctor replied. He laid his hand on Sarah’s on the blanket and interlocked their fingers.

 “Good, very good.” The priest picked up a candle and waved it over the drinking bowl, muttering under his breath. He put the candle down, and sprinkled something into the bowl. Then he picked it up, and offered it to the couple. “Drink half each, and let your spirit open.”

 The Doctor took the bowl first, and bowed his head in respect before lifting it to his lips. The liquid didn’t have much of a taste, and was easy to swallow. He stopped when it was about halfway drained, and passed it to Sarah.

 The Timelord’s head began to feel light, and the orange candle flames began to fade and bleed into the darkness around them. He heard the bowl hit the floor as Sarah fell into his side.

 “Doctor… what… ?” the woman’s voice was weak and slurring.

 The Doctor grabbed Sarah’s hand, and sensed her fall into unconsciousness. A moment later, he fell backwards, and everything went black around him.

 

 Sarah awakened groggily, feeling sand beneath her hands and face. That wasn’t right, she was inside a stone temple, sitting on a blanket with the Doctor. She opened her eyes, and lifted her head from the warm sand. “Doctor?” she asked. She quickly sat up at the lack of an answer. “Doctor!”

 He wasn’t there. He’d been sitting beside her, and now he was gone. She wasn’t in the temple of Sekhmet, either. Instead, she was in a half-buried entrance to a much more ominous temple.

 The stone was dark, almost black, and the pillars and walls rose very high. Sand blew around her, yet somehow didn’t sting at her skin or eyes. “Doctor!” she called out again. She got to her feet, and stared into the foreboding darkness of the temple ahead of her. She turned to look behind at the blowing sand, and took a deep breath to steel herself to head into the temple.

 

 The Doctor startled awake, his breaths quick. “Sarah?” He immediately noticed she wasn’t with him. The second thing he quickly noticed was the cage around him. He shot to his feet, and grabbed at the wooden beams. He could feel that while it looked like wood, it felt as strong as steel.

 He gritted his teeth and grunted as he tried to pry the beams apart to make a big enough space for him to slip through. “Come on…” He moved to kicking at the door.

 He had no idea why he was in a cage, or even where he was or how he got here. All he knew was that Sarah was missing and he was trapped.

 After several more fruitless attempts, the Doctor gave up, barely making the beams budge or crack. Only now did he really look around at his surroundings. Dark stone and a vague omnipresent lighting with no obvious source filled him with a sense of foreboding. Wherever he was, however he had gotten here… he didn’t have a good feeling about it.

 The Doctor closed his eyes to calm his anxiety. After a moment, he sensed something… familiar?

 “Doctor!” came Sarah’s voice, echoing in the massive space.

 The Doctor shot to his feet and to the cage door. “Sarah? Sarah!”

 “Doctor?” Running footsteps accompanied the call.

 Sarah emerged into view, and ran to the cage. “Doctor! You’re alright?” She wrapped her hands around his on the beams.

 “Other than being in this cage, yes,” the Timelord assured. “You?”

 Sarah nodded, and inspected the lock on the door. Then she glanced around. “I doubt there’d just be a key around. Can’t be that easy.”

 The Doctor looked around, too, and saw something glinting on the floor behind the cage. “There,” he pointed out. “Looks like a sword.”

 Sarah hurried over, and picked it up. “Definitely a sword.” She walked around to the cage door, swinging the weapon a few times to get used to it. She hadn’t had much experience with swords before, but she could do some basic swinging. “Shall I try for the lock or the beams?”

 “Lock first.”

 “Right… Stand back.” Sarah raised the sword up in both hands, and aimed for the lock.

 “Be steady,” the Doctor advised, stepping back. He saw a golden glow appear around the blade and handle of the sword as it came down.

 The blow glanced off the lock, and Sarah blew out a short breath. “Missed.” She raised the sword to try again.

 The glow once again appeared as the blade came down. This time, the sound of metal solidly striking metal, then clanging to the ground rang out. The Doctor immediately rushed towards the door and shoved it open, and met Sarah in a hug. Sarah awkwardly held the sword out to her side to return the embrace one-armed.

 “How’d you get in there?” she inquired.

 “I have no idea. I awakened there. Where were you?”

 “At the entrance of this place.” Sarah swallowed heavily as she looked around. “Doesn’t look like the most friendly of places.”

 “No… no it does not.”

 Both turned at the sudden strong wind that blew from the direction Sarah had come. Sarah pushed her hair from her face, and the Doctor put his arm around her.

 “I think that means we’re supposed to go this way,” the Doctor concluded, following the direction of the wind.

 Sarah handed the sword to the man, and huddled into him as they walked. The wind stopped soon after they started, but they kept going, somehow knowing they were meant to. They both noticed occasional green wisps in the air.

 A few minutes later, they came to a slow-moving river in the stone floor. They stared across the dark water, and up river. “Well,” Sarah sighed, “That’s not at all concerning. Do we swim it?”

 The Doctor crouched down, and studied the water. An odd green light seemed to reflect off the surface, though there was nothing green above or around to be reflected. He looked back up at Sarah, “Look, there’s something coming.”

 A trireme boat steadily came downstream, and slowed to a stop in front of them.

 “I really don’t like this,” Sarah remarked.

 “Neither do I, but it seems we’re meant to keep going.”

 “Wherever it takes us?”

 “Wherever it takes us.”  

 With little other choice, they boarded the boat, and it set off. They stood in the middle of the deck, mostly keeping their eyes forward.

 Sarah shivered. “Nothing like riding on a ghost ship on a river in a colossal black-stone temple.”

 The Doctor reached out to take Sarah’s hand. His other hand rested on the hilt of the sword tucked into his cloth belt.

 They both flinched and turned at the sound of several things hitting the wooden deck behind them. The Doctor began to draw the sword, but stopped when there was no immediate threat.

 Several arrows stuck straight up out of the deck in a circle, embedded in the wood by their tips. In the middle of the circle was a bow. They both took a tentative step forward, in case anything else fell.

 Sarah then approached the weapon with more confidence, and touched one of the arrows. She flinched back when it, the bow, and the rest of the arrows began to glow at the contact in the same way that the sword had earlier.  

 The arrow stayed golden, and Sarah touched it again. She grasped the shaft firmly, and yanked it out of the deck. The sharp tip glowed slightly more brightly. She stepped into the circle to pick up the bow, and examined it. “Never used one of these before.”

 “Somehow, I doubt that matters much here,” the Doctor remarked.

 Sarah lifted the bow and notched the arrow, the motion feeling weirdly natural, despite no experience. She aimed at the vacant ship’s wheel, and released. She smiled in satisfaction as the arrow thudded into the wood where she intended.

 “Nice shot,” the Doctor approved.

 “This is strange, though.” Sarah snorted and shook her head. “That’s an understatement.”

 “Let’s not think about that.” The Doctor picked up another arrow.

 They collected the remaining arrows and stood in the middle of the deck as the boat continued on. A few minutes later, it came to a stop at a dock. The Doctor and Sarah glanced to each other with some trepidation. “Guess this is our stop,” Sarah commented, her hand nervously tightening around the bow.

 They stepped off onto the dark stone. Sarah turned back to the boat, and watched as it floated on and disappeared in smoke. “Definitely our stop.”

 The Doctor’s hand went to the sword as he listened for danger. He whipped his head towards a shuffling sound from a wall. Sarah said his name in a hushed tone, and he looked to her. He rushed to her at the sight of her clothing changing to something familiar.

 “Doctor, what…?” All Sarah could do was stare down at herself. Once she was back in the white Victorian dress she had worn when they had faced Sutekh, she looked up to the Timelord. Her eyes widened as his clothes changed, too. Those green wisps from earlier accompanied the transformation, and drifted away until he was in the outfit he had worn during that adventure.

 They didn’t have time to contemplate what this meant before Sarah pointed behind the Doctor. She readied the bow, and the man drew the sword as several mummies approached. These weren’t the robot servants they had encountered before. No, these looked like real ones, with rotting flesh peeking through decaying bandages.

 “Come on,” the Doctor nudged Sarah ahead of him so they could run. He advised her to not shoot and waste the arrows, and he fended off any that came close enough to be a threat with his weapon.

 They ran, until they reached an open-ceilinged chamber with a wooden door. They pushed it closed, and lowered the heavy bar to lock it.

 Sarah bent over to catch her breath. The sound of a sandstorm raged above them, drowning out the frantic beating of her heart in her ears.

 An intense green light suddenly washed over everything, and the Doctor cried out and dropped to his knees, the sword clanging to the stone next to him.

 Sarah spun to see the new threat, and swallowed heavily in fear at the huge figure, at least thirty feet tall, sitting on a black-stone chair, who hadn’t been here or visible when they had entered. “Sutekh…”

 The green light flashed again, now focused on the Timelord, and Sarah dropped down to the Doctor’s side as he yelped in pain again. She was blown backwards a short distance when she tried to touch him.

 “Please!” the Doctor begged though a sob. “Stop! Stop!”

 “Kneel! Kneel before the might of Sutekh!” the god’s voice boomed over the howling wind above. “You interfering ant.”

 “Doctor!” Sarah got up to her feet, and turned to face the towering god. She aimed an arrow, and let it fly. It hit the intended target, one of the glowing green eyes of the mask.

 But Sutekh didn’t even flinch, didn’t seem to notice, and the golden arrow disintegrated.

 “What?” Sarah breathed in disbelief. “But I… I hit it, I know I did.”

 “You think that enough to stop me?” Sutekh asked. His eyes flashed again, and the Doctor outright screamed. His body spasmed, and he curled up on his side.

 Sarah tried again, and the arrow disintegrated before it could even touch Sutekh.

 “The Human girl who travels with you…”

 “Get out of my mind! Get out! Stop! Please…”

 Sarah readied another arrow. “Stop it! Leave him alone!” She couldn’t do anything for the Doctor, couldn’t get close to comfort him, couldn’t stop Sutekh’s torture of him.

 “Oh, Timelord… she’s so very special to you. Look at her.”

 The agony in the Doctor’s mind and body faded enough for him to raise his head and look up to the woman. Her expression was afraid and angry and uncertain, and he tried to give her an assuring smile.

 The Doctor’s hands seized into fists at another flare of pain, but he kept his eyes on Sarah.

 “I see her… She’s strong and spirited. But… Humans can be so fragile.”

 “No! No! Leave her alone!” He gritted his teeth as he pushed himself up to his knees.

 “Abase yourself!” Sutekh commanded, and the Timelord screamed as his body keeled over to the side.

 “What do I do?” Sarah asked, tears welling in her eyes.

 Sutekh laughed. “So helpless, both of you.”

 In frustration, Sarah released another arrow at Sutekh’s eye. As before, its aim was true, but it didn’t matter as it disintegrated before it could touch him. The god only laughed at the effort, which mixed with the Timelord’s cries as he inflicted more agony on him.

 “This is enough!”

 Sarah turned to the new feminine voice. Within a few seconds, the walls of the building faded into the sand. The storm receded from around them. Now standing where the door they had locked had been was a woman with the head of a lioness, holding a spear. “Sekhmet?” Sarah couldn’t believe what she was seeing.

 “You have caused enough suffering.” Sekhmet hit the butt of her spear to the ground, and an army of lions and lionesses appeared behind her. Without another word, she and they charged forward.

 Sekhmet ran between the Doctor and Sarah on her way to Sutekh. Sarah’s attention returned to the Doctor as soon as the green light from Sutekh’s eyes shifted away from them. She dropped the bow and rushed to him. She dropped to his side, and let out a breath of relief as she was now able to touch him.

 “Doctor?” Sarah lightly shook his shoulder. She covered his head protectively with her arms when all he could muster was a low groan from the residual pain. “Doctor? Please…”

 “S-Sarah?”

 “I’m here.” Sarah’s hand soothingly went through the wild curls. The man’s eyes stayed tightly closed, and his body didn’t unfurl. “I’m here.”

 Sarah sensed an approaching presence and raised her head to the battle of lions tearing at Sutekh’s robes and limbs and being blasted away by green light. Two lions came towards them, one male and one female. Sarah got a strange feeling that she knew them, and as they got closer, she saw the scar on the lioness’ neck. “You’re… how?” This was the pair they had encountered at that abandoned temple of Sekhmet, the pair who had invited them inside to meet their pride.

 Almost in answer, the pair of lions bowed their heads to her when they were within Sarah’s reach. Then the male went to the Doctor, and the female pressed her forehead to Sarah’s.

 Then everything disappeared. The howling wind, the sounds and sights of the battle, the stone beneath them. Everything.

 

 Sarah's eyes were closed, but she wasn’t unconscious. She was only vaguely aware of the strange sensation of weightless floating and rotating.

 Eventually, her eyes slowly opened, and she was met with the breathtaking sight of a colourful nebula cloud. She turned her head slightly and saw the blackness of space. But she didn’t panic, somehow feeling at peace despite floating in deep space.

 The next movement of her head revealed the Doctor, also floating. But he wasn’t moving, his eyes weren’t open, and now Sarah felt afraid.

 “Doctor?” her voice somehow carried, even though she knew it shouldn’t. She reached out to grab the end of the scarf and pulled herself to him. “Doctor?”

 The Timelord awakened, and took Sarah’s hand. He pulled her to him the rest of the way, and into a tight embrace. Both flinched at the soft strikes to their waists. The lion pair was back.

 “Hello,” the Doctor greeted, his voice unsteady.

 The lions nuzzled against them, then surrounded the two in a protective stance.

 The Doctor clung to Sarah like a lifeline, the earlier torture still affecting him hard.

 They simply floated together, the lions protecting them, for an indeterminate length of time. It could’ve been a minute or an hour. Somehow, they didn’t feel time, and the concept of time meant nothing.

 A figure appeared before them, silhouetted by the nebula. Sekhmet, holding her bloody spear. She seemed to smile at them, showing that her sharp teeth were also stained red. “Doctor, Sarah.” She bowed her head to them.  

 “Sekhmet,” the couple addressed in unison.

 “The travellers of time and space, who fight and heal… The carriers of my spirit.”

 Neither was sure how to respond to that, and only nodded their acknowledgment.

 “You have defeated many threats, Sutekh the most dangerous.” Sekhmet floated towards them. “You will face many more, both together and separate.”

The Doctor and Sarah glanced to each other for a second.

 “Your lives take you across the stars. A wondrous existence.”

 “We like to think so,” the Doctor agreed.

 Sekhmet stopped from the pair within arm reach. The lions moved to flank her, leaving the side of the couple with a head nudge to their hands. “My lions,” Sekhmet whispered. The spear disappeared and she stroked the top of their heads. Then she raised her hands to caress the faces of the Timelord and the Human. “My lions. Strong and beautiful.”

 The goddess closed the distance and pressed her forehead to both the Doctor’s and Sarah’s. “You shall continue to carry my spirit between you. Go now.”

 

 Sarah shot upright, eyes flying open. The Doctor awakened more easily. Their hands still held onto the other’s.

 Gone was the nebula and weightless sensation. No, they were again on solid ground. It took a moment for their eyes to adjust to the smoky candlelit room. The scent of burning incense hung in the air.

 “You are safe,” the priest assured.

 “What was all that?” Sarah asked, leaning heavily against the Doctor. Her face felt warm where the goddess had touched it. 

 “It is not my place to know what you experienced. I was only to give you the means to do so.” The priest stood and bowed his head to them. “Take as much time as you need to recover before you go.”

 “Thank you,” the Doctor replied. As the priest left them, he let go of Sarah’s hand to put his arm around her and hold her close. He lowered his head to the top of hers and simply rested there.

 

 Sarah’s fingers lazily trailed through the water below. She was lying on her front with her head over the side of the sailboat, staring down at the deep blue of the lake. A faraway expression adorned her face.

 The Doctor looked down to Sarah as he manipulated the sail. “Thinking about it?”

 Sarah chuckled. “I know you are, too. It did just happen.”

 The Doctor folded the sail so the boat would just float without direction, and laid down on his back next to Sarah. He smiled at her, and she turned her head to look at him.

 “It was a dream, that’s all,” the Doctor stated.

 “I know. I know it wasn’t real. But… we did still experience it. Together, even. Like a shared dream.”

 “It was certainly intense.”

 “Yeah, that’s a word for it.” Sarah returned to staring down at the water.

 “Are you alright?” the Timelord asked after a long moment.

 Sarah nodded, and took a deep breath. “She said we’d face more together and apart. What did she mean by that?”

 “I took it to mean there are some things that you have to face, and some things I have to face, and some we face together.” The Doctor shrugged. “But, I wouldn’t put too much stock into what she said.”

 “On account of it being a dream, yes, I know. Still…” Sarah dipped her fingers in the water again. “I wonder why we’d dream of her and the bow and the sandstorm…”

 “It doesn’t surprise me our dream would have the context of this culture, considering how much we’ve been immersed in it over the past several weeks.”

 “How were we able to have a shared dream like that?” Sarah reconsidered the question and looked to the Doctor. “Actually, I don’t need to know that. I’d rather keep some of the mystical qualities alive.”

 “There are a couple of things I can’t explain, but I’ll forego explaining what I can.”

 Sarah flashed an affectionate smile. “Thanks.” Then she shivered. “Still, a lot to think about.”

 The Doctor raised his hand to brush down Sarah’s cheek with the back of his fingers. Sarah shifted over to caress the man’s cheek and kiss him.

 “My goddess…” the Doctor whispered before their lips met.

 Whatever the intense shared dream had meant, Sarah felt that this was their destiny.


End file.
